Approximately 20 years ago a group of friends got together and started a book club. There are a few of us who are still here from that original group and many have come and gone throughout the years. During that time we created many lasting memories, read a lot of good books and have eaten some great food. Now we are trying to join the younger generation and figure out this blog business. Thanks to all who have joined me on this journey.

Friday, March 25, 2016

April Book

KIRKUS REVIEW

Originally published in Sweden, this charming debut novel by Backman should find a ready audience with English-language readers.

The book opens helpfully with the following characterizations about its protagonist: “Ove is fifty-nine. He drives a Saab. He’s the kind of man who points at people he doesn’t like the look of, as if they were burglars and his forefinger a policeman’s torch.” What the book takes its time revealing is that this dyed-in-the-wool curmudgeon has a heart of solid gold. Readers will see the basic setup coming a mile away, but Backman does a crafty job revealing the full vein of precious metal beneath Ove’s ribs, glint by glint. Ove’s history trickles out in alternating chapters—a bleak set of circumstances that smacks an honorable, hardworking boy around time and again, proving that, even by early adulthood, he comes by his grumpy nature honestly. It’s a woman who turns his life around the first time: sweet and lively Sonja, who becomes his wife and balances his pessimism with optimism and warmth.

In the contest of Most Winning Combination, it would be hard to beat grumpy Ove and his hidden, generous heart.